Friday, February 26, 2016

Blog Tour: The Ground Rules Undone by Roya Carmen

The Ground Rules were impossible to follow. It was hard not to become completely consumed by the beautiful and enigmatic Weston Hanson. The heart of a romantic was not fit for this kind of exchange. So, when it ended, I was shattered, but it was all for the better…or so we thought.

The Ground Rules were rewritten, and then bent. We lied to ourselves. We told ourselves we could handle this. Not a single one of us realized just how big this was...just how devastating it could become.

And now, there are no Rules.

Lust… infatuation…blinds you. It can tear everything apart. But sometimes, life needs to be completely torn apart before it can be mended – not just cracked at the edges, but utterly shattered, before you can truly see the mess you’ve become.

I love them both, but I can’t have them both. While one pulls me in, the other pushes me away. And when both eventually open their hearts, I must make the hardest decision of my life.

And now there are no Rules. We are Undone.

4.5 StarsReview by Lisa Kane

I can't say how anxious I've been for this last installment. When the second book ended, Mirella and Weston had ended things but Mirella (Gabe calls her "Ella") had her world rocked and not in a good way.

We lived such an idyllic life. Such a perfect life. But it wasn't good enough for me, was it?

The first quarter of this story is Mirella coming to grips with her life. She knows she should come clean with both Gabe and Weston, but she just wallows in self pity and I was losing my patience with her. But then a little further into the book, I had more sympathy for her and wanted to throttle both Weston and Gabe. I can understand Gabe's reaction but he comes pretty close to crossing the line. I have never been a fan of Bridgett's. She is so self centered and exists in her own bubble but she managed to surprise even me by the depth of her shallowness. Weston-don't get me started on this man. Where are your balls? I guess if Dora was going to explore where they were hiding, I would suggest she start with Bridgett's purse. Surely she would find them there. But each man still holds power over Mirella and her feeling are all over the place.

"You've got to stop this. You know the power you have over me. And you take advantage of it. You play me. You manipulate me with your beautiful face and your beautiful words."

Once Ella takes things into her own hands, this book really starts to come alive. Each person's reaction is so over the top and so not what I expected. Mirella is so plagued with doubts and guilt, and the guys are so in their own heads weighed down by their feelings. Who is Mirella going to choose and frankly is it really up to Mirella at this point? My Team Gabe position kept flip flopping because Weston is just so caring and open and honest about his feelings. But then Gabe would suck me back in-he is the foundation for their marriage, the one who Ella can turn to in the storm. Who should she be with and why isn't it me who is in this position with these two gorgeous men?

"The truth is," he goes on with an unfading intensity in his eyes. "I never imagined you could fall for him."

The whole time I was reading this series, I kept thinking how can this story end? If Mirella ends up alone, that's going to really hurt. If she ends up with Weston; poor Gabe, he is going to be devastated. Sharing children between them will force him to have to see Mirella and Weston more than he would want. If she ends up with Gabe, Weston is so addicted to her that she will never be free from him. He talks a good talk about staying away from her, but he never walks the walk.

Loving someone you can't have is torture; an invisible, unassuming, soft agony, a constant feeling of longing, a void.

There is a whole passage between Gabe and Ella and why they became involved with Bridgette and Weston. It is brutally honest and answered so many questions I had, while hurting my heart at the same time.

But Ms. Carmen has managed to end this story in a way I could never have foreseen. Well played oh wise, clever sage. While there was a part of me that was left unsettled (avoiding giving out spoilers for this book is like walking through a mine field) at the ending, it was really the only way this story should have played out.

Gabe buries his empty bottle of beer in the sand. And he studies me. His gaze lingers on me for what seems like an eternity. “Where have you been this weekend, Ella?”

I look up at him, not able to say a word.

“You seem distracted…distant. Are you not having a good time?”

I smile at him. “I am. It’s been the best trip.”

“It’s been great,” he agrees, looking up at the dark sky. And then he turns to me with a playful smile. “But I think it’s been missing a little something.”

I can’t help but smile. I know exactly what he’s saying.

He sits up and pulls off his fleece throw. “You think you have room on that chair of yours?”

I smile at him. “I don’t know…you’re a pretty big guy.”

He laughs. “I think you can make room,” he says with a wicked smile. “I think you want to make room.”

“Oh do I, now?”

He bites his lip. “Oh, you do,” he says as he stands and joins me under the purple blanket. The warmth of his body against mine feels amazing. I hadn’t realized how cold I was.

“Much better,” he says, his eyes glued to mine.

“Much better.”

Suddenly I find myself speechless. It’s so wonderful being close to him like this again. I try to forget about everything else. I just want to enjoy being next to him. He shoots me a playful grin – the kind of smile that says it all. Unsuspecting, he’s so carefree, so happy and it absolutely tears me apart. Maybe just tonight, I can pretend it’s just us two, like it used to be. I can let go of everything else and give him the fun wife he’s known forever. I don’t need to drag him down with me just yet.

I want him to kiss me. We haven’t kissed in ages. We haven’t touched each other in forever. I crave him, and I’m sure he craves me just as much.

He leans in and presses his mouth against mine. His kiss is soft and warm, and perfect. I trail my finger along the rough scruff on his face. I relish the feel of his tongue on mine. This is the kind of kiss which is really hard to stop. I get lost in it and savor it a little longer.

And when the sensation of his kiss travels to my sex, I finally manage to pull away. “You…better be careful…kissing me like that,” I warn him, the words caught between ragged breaths. “That kind of kiss usually leads places.”

His smile is playful. “That’s exactly the point.”

I smile a nervous grin. “We can’t…here…they can see us. Everyone can see us.”

“It’s pitch dark,” he whispers against my ear. “No one can see.”

The feel of his warm hand on the inside of my thigh is very distracting. “I don’t think…” I can’t really see us having sex here and now. Because I know the way I feel. Despite the crushing guilt, my body desperately wants him, craves his familiar touch. I’d lose control – I just know it. And people might definitely see that.

Mom, writer, book junkie, doodle addict and hopeless romantic. I have been writing for over ten years, finding my passion for romance in 2008. When I'm not spending time with my family, I enjoy reading, painting, and writing - there is nothing I enjoy more than sitting down at my laptop and making up my own stories - and if those stories should include beautiful men, a little romance, and a few steamy scenes, all the better!

I write contemporary and erotic romance under the pen name Roya Carmen.